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Historian: In the Drindian Empire, censuses were conducted annually to determine thepopulation of each village. Village census records for the last half of the 1600’s areremarkably complete. This very completeness makes one point stand out; in fivedifferent years, villages overwhelmingly reported significant population declines.Tellingly, each of those five years immediately followed an increase in a certain Drindiantax. This tax, which was assessed on villages, was computed by the central governmentusing the annual census figures. Obviously, whenever the tax went up, villages had anespecially powerful economic incentive to minimize the number of people they recorded;and concealing the size of a village’s population from government census takers wouldhave been easy. Therefore, it is reasonable to think that the reported declines did nothappen.In the historian’s argument, the two portions in boldface play which of the followingroles?A. The first supplies a context for the historian’s argument; the second acknowledgesa consideration that has been used to argue against the position the historian seeksto establish.B. The first presents evidence to support the position that the historian seeks toestablish; the second acknowledges a consideration that has been used to argueagainst that position.C. The first provides a context for certain evidence that supports the position that thehistorian seeks to establish; the second is that position.D. The first is a position for which the historian argues; the second is an assumptionthat serves as the basis of that argument.E. The first is an assumption that the historian explicitly makes in arguing for acertain position; the second acknowledges a consideration that calls thatassumption into question.------------------------------------------------

Hey saravalli I really appreciate the effort that you put in typing in these questions. But perhaps you could take a little more time to space and format the text a little better ?

My answer here is C.

saravalli wrote:

Historian: In the Drindian Empire, censuses were conducted annually to determine the population of each village. Village census records for the last half of the 1600’s are remarkably complete. This very completeness makes one point stand out; in five different years, villages overwhelmingly reported significant population declines.

Tellingly, each of those five years immediately followed an increase in a certain Drindian tax. This tax, which was assessed on villages, was computed by the central government using the annual census figures. Obviously, whenever the tax went up, villages had an especially powerful economic incentive to minimize the number of people they recorded; and concealing the size of a village’s population from government census takers would have been easy. Therefore, it is reasonable to think that the reported declines did not happen.

In the historian’s argument, the two portions in boldface play which of the following roles?

A. The first supplies a context for the historian’s argument; the second acknowledges a consideration that has been used to argue against the position the historian seeks to establish.

B. The first presents evidence to support the position that the historian seeks to establish; the second acknowledges a consideration that has been used to argue against that position.

C. The first provides a context for certain evidence that supports the position that the historian seeks to establish; the second is that position.

D. The first is a position for which the historian argues; the second is an assumption that serves as the basis of that argument.

E. The first is an assumption that the historian explicitly makes in arguing for a certain position; the second acknowledges a consideration that calls that assumption into question.------------------------------------------------

Historian: In the Drindian Empire, censuses were conducted annually to determine thepopulation of each village. Village census records for the last half of the 1600’s areremarkably complete. This very completeness makes one point stand out; in fivedifferent years, villages overwhelmingly reported significant population declines.Tellingly, each of those five years immediately followed an increase in a certain Drindiantax. This tax, which was assessed on villages, was computed by the central governmentusing the annual census figures. Obviously, whenever the tax went up, villages had anespecially powerful economic incentive to minimize the number of people they recorded;and concealing the size of a village’s population from government census takers wouldhave been easy. Therefore, it is reasonable to think that the reported declines did nothappen.

- BackgroundB1 - Census records were neat and complete- Points out an odd situationB2 - offers an explanation to the odd situation- conclusion

Additional info: B2 supports the conclusion, B1 and B2 follow the same direction.

In the historian’s argument, the two portions in boldface play which of the followingroles?

A. The first supplies a context for the historian’s argument; the second acknowledgesa consideration that has been used to argue against the position the historian seeksto establish.we have an issue with the second boldf, the two portions agree, this answer is inconsistent.B. The first presents evidence to support the position that the historian seeks toestablish; the second acknowledges a consideration that has been used to argueagainst that position.Looks good holdC. The first provides a context for certain evidence that supports the position that thehistorian seeks to establish; the second is that position.The second clarifies the odds and supports the conclusion it is not the conclusion itselfD. The first is a position for which the historian argues; the second is an assumptionthat serves as the basis of that argument.Completely off, the author accepts the first boldf statementE. The first is an assumption that the historian explicitly makes in arguing for acertain position; the second acknowledges a consideration that calls thatassumption into question.The first is not an assumption, moreover the statements go in the same direction_________________